Jeff Lynne (of ELO fame)
John Irving
Alan Dean Foster (not the best sci-fi writer ever, but he gave me quite a few laughs)
Alison Krauss (although I may kick it before she does)
Sue Grafton (mystery novelist) better last until the alphabet is finished! (A is for Alibi…etc.)
Do you have the album he did with Monk? Pure genius, that one.
Terry Pratchett
I admit, none. I like some of their work, and might be annoyed I will not longer get to read it. I might even be slightly saddened because some people just seem like they’d be interesting to meet, and I can’t anymore. But don’t know them, and can’t greive for them. Whomever I see onscreen is merely an ilusion created to a greater or lesser degree from an artist’s imagination. It’s the imagination you greive, not the artist.
Jim Henson popped into my head as soon as I read the thread title, then Fred Rogers, and Carl Sagan.
I’m still grieving Jeff Buckley’s death in 1997. That sound will never exist quite the same again.
Others I’ll Freak Out Over: James Brown, Paul McCartney, and B.B. King
There are many actors and actresses whose work I admire. But the actor who was my first “favorite”, whose name would get me to try a movie without knowing the plot, is Charlton Heston. I think I’ve seen, at least once, every movie he ever did. Regretably, I’ve never seen him on stage, and now that he’s ill there won’t be another chance.
I admire his dedication to his craft and his work ethic. I admire that he’s stayed married to the same person, his wife Lydia, for over 60 years. I read his autobiography In the Arena and enjoyed it very much. He rarely spoke ill of a fellow actor, preferring to either say something good or nothing at all. Heston often expressed his admiration for the works of others too. He was honest and open about his political beliefs.(One of my favorite anecdotes from the book is his account of the March On Washington, when he and other Hollywood figures appeared with Dr. King.
Those I have grieved the most for
Thurman Munson. 1st Yankee captain since Gehrig, Tragically died like Gehrig. My childhood Idol.
John Lennon, I listened to Beatles & Lennon songs for 2 days straight in my grieving.
Stevie Ray Vaughan
**Jim Henson **
Robert Heinlein, I wore a black armband for a week.
The List of celebrities whose passing would greatly upset me.
Yogi Berra: “National Treasure”
Ringo
Leonard Nimoy
Charles DeLint (great but obscure author)
Anne McCaffrey
It’s not the thought of no more Pern books that upsets me (ignoring the fact that her son is now writing Pern books that I haven’t read- not neccessarily won’t read, just haven’t felt like it yet). It’s not the thought of no more other books by her that bothers me- I’m not even sure when the last time I read a book by her that was truly new and not just something I hadn’t read before.
But I first read her at a formative time in my life, she influenced my interest in Science Fiction/Fantasy, she influenced the writing of SF/F that appeals to me back before I was old enough to be interested in it.
I’m not sure what it is, but I’ll be sorry when she’s gone.
I still haven’t gotten over Douglas Adams and Stephen Jay Gould.
I guess it would be Terry Pratchett among authors.
I thought Walter Cronkite was already gone, until I heard him on the radio talking about Peter Jennings the other day. That voice took me right back to childhood watching black and white TV in Mom and Dad’s room.
I mourned when Roger Zelazny died. It hit me pretty hard, much more so than Heinlein, who I knew was well past any reasonable life expectancy.
Add me to the list of people who would be shaken by Robert B. Parker’s leaving. Also, I’ll chase Steven Brust into the Paths of the Dead and wrench him back kicking and screaming if he dies before wrapping up the Taltos thread. The bastard.
Hard to say, especially since Johnny Carson hit me much harder than I ever would have imagined. Also, I still mourn the loss of Walt Disney and he died 3 days after I was born. Some that come to mind though…
Jimmy Carter
Steve Gadd (One of the finest drummers to ever live)
Robert Plant/Jimmy Page
Chick Corea
Betty White
Robin Williams
I don’t think that Willie can die. Besides, doesn’t his drug lawyer already have the papers drawn up to fight it?
Harlan Ellison… I will be devastated. He’s why I am a writer.
When Spalding Gray commited suicide it really hit me. He was also a huge influence on me.
James Herriott, Charles Schultz, Jim Henson and John Denver. Heroes to me, each and every one.
Randy Newman. Steven Sondheim. We’ve lost so many great theater composers lately (and Randy’s FAUST is one of my absolute faves, even though it never made it to Broadway.)
Not so obscure in the fantasy community. He’s still alive, still writing, still releasing new books. (You probably knew that.)
Of all the well-known persons whose deaths I have mourned, none struck me as deeply as Isaac Asimov. I viewed him as a friend and a mentor, and had corresponded with him for several years. The fact that his death was AIDS-related made it worse. God, I hate AIDS.
Of the current crop of my literary and artistic favorites, I think the one I’ll miss most upon his passing is John Irving. Few writers can grab my heart and twist it until tears flow, but Irving is one of the few.
I’ll also miss Stephen King. In fact, I already miss the Stephen King who wrote The Shining, It, and The Green Mile.
You know, I can’t honestly think of someone who’s death will really really get to me…I suppose McCartney will be a big deal but he’s so far past his prime that I won’t really be think, “Damn…we’re missing out on so much great music now.”
Hmmmm. How 'bout Spielberg? That will be like a Hollywood earthquake when he finally goes.
Anyway, I just wanted to echo Mehitabel and agree that Randy Newman’s Faust is a brilliant and criminally underrated album. (I never saw the show…if there even was one!)